Month: January 2015

Getting ready for the big game? There are three essential tips for an unforgettable indoor tailgate – good game, clever commercials and fantastic food. Now, we can’t guarantee everyone a good game, especially with this year’s exciting lineup, nor can we assure you that every one of those infamous commercials will be worth the millions.

The food, however, that’s a different story.

Traditional football finger foods like wings, veggies and meatballs, will always make their way to a Super party. But if you really want to amp up the energy, make some creative choices with your game day menu. Think of your football party snacks as another form of décor and make try out regional recipes of iconic foods from the teams’ hometowns. With the right food, you can capture the sights, smells and culture of Boston and Seattle, creating an awe-inspiring spread that will take center stage.

Pass around some Oysters during Half-Time

Oysters are a part of New England history. In Colonial days they were boiled, scalloped or steamed, and sometimes even roasted over an open fire. Raw and natural, oysters on the half shell taste just like the ocean – fresh, cold and glistening.

Many people pair raw oysters with crackers, but we discovered that these sea-water delicacies taste even better with a thick slice of King Arthur’s Focaccia Bread!

Seattle fan? Sink your teach into these SpaceNeedle Coffee Cookies

Not only is Seattle home to the Seahawks, but it’s also home to the largest clustering of coffee houses in the country. Home to Starbucks and Seattle’s Best, no Seahawk party is complete without a shot of caffeine. Keep the energy up for the post-half-time lull with these bold and rich coffee drop cookies:

Instructions: Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Cream shortening (butter), add sugar gradually, creaming until light and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Sift flour, Clabber Girl Baking Powder, cinnamon, and salt together. Add raisins, mix well. Add to creamed mixture alternately with the Rex Coffee, beating until smooth. Drop by teaspoonfuls on a greased baking sheet and bake in a moderate oven for 12 to 15 minutes.

Take a bite of a Mount Rainier Chocolate Cherry Cookies

There is something special about the flavor of Seattle Rainier cherries. They are juicy and complex, and sometimes carry a slightly bittersweet hint. Using Rainier Cherries turns these chocolate cherry cookies into a wonderful snack fans will devour.

If you want more than just traditional finger foods for game day, fuel up with these signature dishes that are savory and succulent. Using traditional foods from the teams’ hometowns will boost your fandom, and your hosting reputation, to the next level. These mouth-watering munchies will ensure your guests agree that your food scored big.

2014 saw an explosion of sweet and savory combinations like chicken and waffles and chocolate-covered potato chips; how can we ever top those?

Believe it or not, 2015 is set to get even more flavorful.

Sweet and savory conversions are so delectable because they intrigue our complex taste buds. You may already know that the human tongue contains more than

10,000 taste buds, but did you also know that each individual bud contains 50-100 taste receptors? On top of that, each one of those is primed for a specific taste –salty, sweet, bitter and sour.

There’s no denying it – we were made to love food.

With all those taste buds in close proximity, the combination of salty and sweet excites us on a chemical level. That’s why these sweet and savory conversions have become so popular (not to mention they are as much fun to eat as they are to make).

Want to give some of these creative recipes a try in your own kitchen, but aren’t sure where to start? Here are four simple recipes you can try at home.

Strawberry & Chicken Pizza

On your family’s next pizza night, ditch the delivery and try out this explosive sweet and savory conversion – strawberries, chicken, onions and bacon – all on one savory slice of homemade pizza. Clabber Girl even has the perfect quick and easy recipe to make your own pizza dough:

Ingredients:

2 1/2 c. all-purpose flour

1 tsp. kosher salt

1/2 tsp. granulated sugar

2 1/2 tsp. Clabber Girl Baking Powder

1 1/2 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil

1 c. water

Instructions: In a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook attachment; whisk together flour, salt, sugar, and Clabber Girl Baking Powder. Add the olive oil, water and combine ingredients with mixer machine set on low speed. Increase speed to medium and kneed for 3 to 4 minutes until dough is smooth. Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Place the dough on a lightly floured surface and roll the dough to the desired circumference. Bake dough for 15 to 20 minutes or until cooked through.

Apple and Cheddar Bread

Just about everything tastes better when you add a little cheese, so why not apples? The bitter sweetness of a ripened apple perfectly complements the bold flavor of sharp cheddar. Top your next slice of apple pie with a sprinkle of cheese or add a cupful to this rich apple bread.

Doughnut Burger

You didn’t think we forgot, did you? It sounds crazy, but trust us – it’s amazing! Add a whole new level to your turkey, beef or even veggie burgers by replacing the bun with sticky sweet glazed doughnuts. Clabber Girl’s Orange Glazed Doughnut recipe is the perfect partner for this savory-sweet combo.

Don’t be afraid to experiment. Keep your taste buds guessing and you’ll also keep your friends and family begging for more.

Bread – it’s one of our most beloved foods. It’s the perfect companion to almost any recipe and it has its familiar spot on just about every table. We can eat it for breakfast, lunch, dinner and anything in between. We use the dough in cakes, muffins, loaves and more. We do more than just eat bread; we use it as a means to gather and share. We break bread together.

That means we can also bake bread together.

Most people buy bread in the store or at a bakery, but, believe it or not, you can have the savory smell of baking bread to waft through your own house without slaving for hours in the kitchen. There are three main categories of breads you bake at home:

Yeast-raised dough: The yeast is used as the leavening agent, taking several hours and several stages to help the dough rise. Buns, rolls and breads are all common yeast-rising recipes.

Laminated breads: Bakers will get a forearm workout with all the flipping and folding involved with this type of dough. Flaky, puffy dough is used to create mouth-watering desserts like baklava, strudel and spanakopita.

Quick breads: These recipes span a landscape of baked goods – from biscuits to scones, muffins to loaves. They called “quick” because they must be cooked right after the ingredients are mixed. They don’t use yeast or eggs to rise.

Since we’re looking for a way to make nutritious homemade bread in a short time, let’s rule yeasts and laminates out. For the novice baker or someone who wants to squeeze homemade dumplings into an already busy day, quick breads are the way to go. Typical quick bread ingredients include:

All-purpose flour

Milk or warm water

Salt and sugar (depending on the result – donuts or scones might call for more sweet)

Proportions all vary depending on the type of bread you’re baking. In order to bake bread that comes out moist and flavorful from crust to crumb, you need to learn how these raw ingredients work together.

Biscuits

Everyone should know how to create fabulous light and fluffy biscuits. From breakfast to dinner, quick bread biscuits are moist and flavorful without being heavy. Plus, skipping the yeast step cuts down your prep time by hours so you can sleep in a little later.

Clabber Girl Baking Powder and cream of tartar make this flavorful biscuit recipe a total crowd pleaser.

Piecrusts

Get ready to say goodbye to store bought crusts for good. We may be biased, but we think homemade crusts make pies taste even better. This quick bread pie crust recipe bakes beautifully and is extra special – cream cheese makes for an unforgettable flavor.

Flatbreads

Homemade flatbread is an all-star dish, the perfect companion for pasta, soup, salads and more. It’s easy to get creative with the flavor; you can make it plain for the perfect BLT or heighten it up with spices and seasonings. Ditch the delivery by trying out this amazing onion flatbread recipe as the crust for your next pizza night.

Here at Clabber Girl we know for a fact – if you bake it, the family will come! Gather your loved ones around the table with a new dish from our online recipe box.

You’re baking bread for the first time and you can’t wait for the savory smell of rising dough to start wafting through your house. You bought all high quality ingredients and have been following the recipe to the letter, until one little phrase throws you off – “fold the dough.”

Folding the dough? Like a t-shirt? If you’re confused, don’t worry; you’re not the only one. Most, if not all, first-time bakers encounter specific terminology that makes them shake their heads. That’s why we’ve compiled this list of common basic baking techniques.

So go ahead, bust out those brand new recipes this weekend and give them a whirl.

Baking powder: A leavener used for cooking; an inert filler used to keep ingredients separated.

Baking soda: An alkaline ingredient, and when mixed with acidic ingredients, it reacts and releases bubbles of carbon dioxide.

Beat: Thoroughly combine ingredients and incorporate air with a rapid, circular motion.

Bulk fermentation: Let your yeast bread dough sit and rise at room temperature for two hours. This will make your flavor and texture richer and fluffier.

Buttercream: Soft, spreadable icing that is commonly used on cakes, cupcakes and cookies. Buttercream is versatile and often takes on a flavor such as chocolate or salted caramel.

Caramelize: Heat sugar until it is melted and brown.

Creaming: Blend all ingredients to create a fluffy mixture.

Crimp: Seal the edges of two layers of dough with the tines of a fork or your fingertips.

Crumb coat: A thin layer of frosting that is applied to the cake to keep crumbs “trapped” so that they don’t appear on the final layer of frosting. Refrigerate your cake for 15 minutes between applying the crumb coat and the final layer of frosting.

Cutting in: Combine the flour and dry ingredients with the fat quickly, which is why this
technique is often used with butter. Toss chunks of cold butter into the flour and use a
pastry blender (or two knives, but trust us, the pastry blender is far easier) to mix.

Dash: A measurement less than ⅛ teaspoon.

Docking: Prick the dough with a fork before baking to let some of the steam vent. This is
particularly useful for shortbread.

Double boiler: Used to melt delicate ingredients such as chocolate that can burn easily. To make a double boiler, place a bowl on top of a pan of simmering water. The bowl will not touch the water, but the steam from the water will help heat the ingredient at a lower temperature than if it had direct contact with the bottom of the pan.

Dulce de leche: A caramel-like sauce that is created by heating milk and salt over a double boiler on a medium heat. Let mixture cook for 1- 1 ½ hours, stirring occasionally and adding water when necessary. The mixture should be thick and dark-caramel colored. When finished heating, beat until smooth.

Dust: The light sprinkling of baked good or other surface with a dry ingredient like flour, meal, or powdered sugar.

Fold in: Gently combine a heavier mixture with a more delicate substance, such as beaten egg whites or whipped cream, without causing loss of air.

Glaze: Brushing food with milk, egg, or sugar before baking in order to produce a shiny golden finish; to brush a thin coating of icing on top of a baked cake, cookie or bread to give the food a sweet and shiny finish.

Knead: Fold, push, and turn dough or other mixture to produce a smooth, elastic texture.

Leavening: The production of a gas in a dough batter using an agent like baking powder, yeast, baking soda, or even egg whites. Leavening agents work via the production of gas in the dough.

Partially set: Refrigerate a gelatin mixture until it thickens to the consistency of unbeaten egg whites

Piping: Use a pastry bag to add frosting and other creamy toppings to cupcakes, cakes
and cookies; piping can also be used to fill pastries.

Proofing: When you give your bread dough one final rise. Shape your dough into loaves and let them sit in the refrigerator. This will give the dough extra flavor and improves the bread quality, from crust to crumb.

Sifting: Pass the flour through a sifter to add air for a light, spongy texture; this can also help accurately measure ingredients.

Softened: Margarine, butter, ice cream, or cream cheese that is in a state soft enough for easy blending, but not melted.

Unleavened: Baked goods that do not use a leavening agent like baking soda, cream of tartar, baking powder, or yeast.

Whisk: Hand or electric whisking will incorporate air into the mixture, creating lighter
texture.

Clabber Girl Corporation

We are leaders in leavening systems, striving to provide quality ingredients, deliver excellent customer service and supply trusted brands. We've been working on perfecting our formulas for over 150 years, and have the expertise to make your baking, whether it be in the home, at the restaurant or in a manufacturing facility, a perfect rise every time.